MEXICO

Mexico is confronting a pressing environmental challenge. The booming mezcal industry, driven by global demand, is exerting pressure on the forests in Oaxaca, where the majority of this agave-based spirit is produced. The expansion of agave plantations has led to deforestation, soil degradation, waterway contamination, and reduced carbon sequestration. Annually, Mexico produces over 11 million liters of mezcal, with 70% of it exported internationally.

CANADA

After nearly a century, the identity of human remains discovered during a 2020 construction project in France has been confirmed as Albert Henry Detmold, a World War I soldier from Manitoba. Private Detmold, age 33, was killed on August 15, 1917, during the initial day of the Battle of Hill 70 near Loos-en-Gohelle, a conflict that resulted in nearly 10,000 Canadian casualties, including those killed, wounded, or missing.

ITALY

A museum in Naples allowed its visually impaired guests to experience priceless art by touching it. This month, the Sansevero Chapel Museum had the protective barriers surrounding its marble sculptures removed so 80 blind or partially-sighted participants wearing latex gloves could touch them. The initiative, called La meraviglia a portata di mano, which means “Wonder within reach,” included Giuseppe Sanmartino’s “Veiled Christ,” considered one of the most impressive in the history of sculpture.